Aircraft furniture



Oct. 3, 1939. H. s. DALE AIRCRAFT FURNITURE Filed June 24, 1937 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. HUBERT S.DALE

I V V ATTORNEY.

Oct. 3, 1939. H. s. DALE AIRCRAFT FURNITURE Filed June 24, 1937 3 Sheets-Shae; 2

INVENIOR .HUBERT 5. DA LE ATTORNEY.

Oct. 3, 1939.

. H. s. DALE AIRCRAFT FURNiTURE Filed June 24, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 3' Patented Oct. 3, 1939 PATENT OFFICE AIRCRAFI FURNITURE Hubert S. Dale, Middle River, Md., assignor to The v 7 Glenn L. Martin Company, Baltimore, Md.

Application June ,24,

3 Claims.

This invention relates to aircraft furniture and more particularly, butnot necessarily, to an aircraft chair of the reclining type.

It is one object of this invention to provide an improved aircraft chair having a novel retractable leg and foot rest.

Another object is to provide in combination with a conventional chair having an adjustable or reclining back, an adjustable seat, an improved leg and foot rest that shall be easily and readily moved to and from a stowed position located within the confines -of the chair.-

A further object is to provide an improved leg and foot rest in combination with a chair, which leg and foot rest may be folded into acompact arrangement and stowed within the confines of the said chair.

A still further object is to provide a chair having the 'above combined characteristics that shall contain novel meansfor retracting the leg and foot rest within the confines of the chair.

An additional object is to provide an improved leg and foot rest in combination with a chair, which leg and foot rest requires no latches in the open position.

Another object is to provide in combination with a chair an improved leg and'foot rest which leg and foot rest supports the weight of the legs of an occupant near the calf and at the heel.

The above and other objects will be made apparent throughout the further description of the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like 'parts. -It will be understood that the drawings .are not a definition of ,the invention but merely illustrate forms by means of which the invention may be efiectuated; The invention will be claims.

In the drawings: I

Figure 1 is a perspective view of two aircraft chairs of the reclining type illustrating one embodiment of the invention, one chair showing a leg and foot rest placed in a folded position- Fig. 1A is a cross-sectional view showing the attachment of a trackway to a bracket.

Figure 2 is a side view of a track together wit a leg and foot rest in the open position.

Fig. 2A is a plan view of a detail in Fig. 1. Figure 3 is a fragmentary view of a' chair rod embodying a part of the invention.

Fig. 4A is a plan. view of a detail in Fig. 4.

Figure 4 is a side view of a track together-with defined by the appended 1937, Serial No. 150,054

g a leg and foot rest in the open position and embodying another form of the invention.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the embodiment of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, the forms shownin Figures 1 to 3, inclusive, illustrate one embodirnent of the invention, in'which I indicates an aircraft chair of the reclining type in its entirety having a conventional means 34 for the purpose of reclining the back 39 of said chair, 1.

a suitable means 35 for the purpose of adjusting the seat 2 of said chair, a leg and foot rest attached, to said chair, a hollow-tube frame 3 supporting the said seat, the said hollow tube frame running under and parallel to the edges ll of said seat, the said hollow tube frame being attached by suitable means to each leg panel 9 and 9a which support said hollow tube frame 3.

On the front bar of hollow tube frame 3 and. near each end thereof and welded thereto, spaced plates II and Na are suspended at a rearward sloping angle, each of said plates having an opening 23, the purpose of which will be understood as the description ofthe invention progresses.

. A pair of arcuate shaped tracks 4 and a, each possessing a longitudinally running slot 21, are attached by suitable means as by welding as shown in Fig. 1A to plates II and I la, respectively, and said tracks run substantially parallel to each other and to leg panels 9 and 9a of 30 aircraft chair I. to a point under the rear edge of seat 2, each of the said tracks being held in position by a supporting bar I attached to each track by means of a side bracket 6. Supporting bar 1 extends upward at a slightly sloping angle a and is attached at its other end by means I to tube frame 3. Supporting barl serves in addition to hold the track to which it is attached sufliciently above the floor toallow leg and foot rest II to. slide freely under the track. Brace IS-attached to the ,end of each track by means of a bolt l3 serves to hold said tracks in relative position to each other and in addition acts as a stop for roller l6.

Iieg and foot rest ll is composed of two sections, leg section l1 and foot section ,lla connected by means of ahinge II in such manner that foot section "a can be folded under leg section II as shown in aircraft chair in of Figure 1. Foot section Fla is attached to leg sec-. tion II at an angle, the upper surfaces of said sections in operative position forming in effect a curve for the purpose of supporting the wei ht of the legs of an occupantof the chair near the calf. and at the heel A pair of short legs II a and Isa, attached one at each side of the trail-- ing edge of foot section Ila, extend downwardly to. a point of contact with the floor when the leg and foot rest is in position for use, said legs serving to support the weight of foot section Ila. The said footsection' is provided with an upholstered cushion 28 covering its upper half and fastened thereto by conventional means, while "the lower half of said foot section is smoothly covered with suitable material. Leg section Il has an upholstered cushion a similar to that provided for the foot section, the said cushion covering the entire surface of leg section Il. The two cushions are placed at such angle that they support the legs of an occupant of the chair in a comfortable manner. Base 2I of leg section ll extends rearward and by means of a pair of curved arms 22 and.22a. to-points inside openings 23 of plates II, each of said curved cushion 20 of foot section Ila rests on the floor.

Dotted section of Figure 1 shows folded leg and foot rest partially pushed under chair I.

' Figure 4 indicates another form of the invention in which aircraft chair I, partially shown in -side view,-has a folding leg and foot rest I0 slidably connected by roller I6 to'a pair of arcuate shaped tracks 4. In this form track 4 having slot 21 is suspended rearward from each end of the front bar of the hollow tube frame 3, said track being curved at an angle allowing its opposite end to rest on the floor, in such manner that the rear of the folded leg and foot rest In is suspended from said track. This form of the invention' eliminates supporting bar I shown in Figure 2. At their lower ends the tracks are connected to each other by means of a round brace 26, the said brace serving for the purpose of maintaining the said tracks in fixed relation to each other, brace 26 acting at the same time as a stop for rollers I6.

Leg and foot .rest I0 is shown in the extended position in Figure-4 in which foot section Ila of the said leg and foot rest is covered on its surface with a mat 30 of suitable material. Foot section Ila possesses an adjustable upturned bracket 29, slidably attached to the 'said foot section and extending along part of the lower side edges of foot section I-la to forma bar against which the feet may be placed. For the purpose of adjusting bracket 29 to the length of the leg of a person occupying the aircraft chair, an S-shaped latch 36 is attached to the said bracket in such man-,

.juncture by leg- 28 attached at 32 to the hinged sides of the foot section at spaced intervals.

section Ila extends in'a downward slopinglinefrom leg section 'Il, to a point above the floor, the said leg and foot sections being supported at their edge of foot section Ila. Leg 28 is preferably a solid panel extending completely across foot sectio -lad and attached to said'foot section at an angle 'to permit said leg to rest on the floor when the two sections are in the open position, rolling bar 3I being attached to the lower edge of said leg. Foot section Ila together with attached leg 28 is hingedly connected to leg section Il. When the leg and foot rest is in the stowed position, foot section Ila together with attached leg 28 is folded over leg section Il in such manner that leg 28 is raised to a substantially upright position shown in the dotted section of Figure 4. At the same time bracket 29 of foot section Ila rests in a slot 33 in leg section ll. Round brace 26 at the terminal of each track resting on the floor serves as stop for folded leg and foot rest, the rear end of said leg and foot rest being positioned in recesses formed in the pair of tracks, in such manner that the upturned leg 28 forms a shield extending from the folding edges of the leg and foot rest I0 to a point near the forward edge of the seat of the aircraft chair, greatly eliminating draft.

While I have illustrated and described two enrbodiments of the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be equally applied to chairs, wherein similar conditions exist, and that it is expected that certain modifications, changes, alterations, substitutions, additions and omissions may be made in the construction here illustrated without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim: I

1. An aircraft chair having a foldable leg and foot rest, an adjustable bracket attached to the foot section of said leg and foot rest, means for adjusting the said bracket, said means including a spring controlled latch mounted on said bracket and engaging locking means on said foot rest section, said foot section being foldablyconnected to said leg section, and a slot in the leg section of said leg and foot rest for the reception of the said bracket together with adjusting means of the said bracket.

2. In combination with a seat, means for supporting saidseat above a floor, a collapsible leg and foot. rest mechanism comprising a leg rest section, means for supporting one end of said leg section at a point adjacent the front edge of said seatpmeans for guiding said end from said point to a rearward position beneath said seat and adjacent said floor, a foot rest section foldably hinged to the other end of said leg section, the hinged ends of said leg and foot sections being adapted and arranged to be supported by said floor when said one end of said leg section is in rearward position beneath said seat, and panel means rigidly secured to said foot section for supporting said foot section in operable position above said floor, said panel means being adapted and arranged to form a draft barrier beneathsaid front edge of said seat when said foot section is folded and in rearward position.

3. A chair having a supporting frame and a seat,'trackways secured to said frame adjacent the front edge of said seat and being curved downwardly and rearwardly to rest upon the floor beneath said seat,a leg rest section slidably fastened at one end to said trackways, a foot rest section hingedly attached at one end to said leg section, a panel rigidly attached to the hinged end of said foot section to extend upwardly when said foot section is folded upwardly over said leg section and said leg-section is drawn inwardly and downwardly beneath said seat.

: ROBERTS. DALE. 

